I ran into an awkward beer-related situation this weekend. It was my grandmother's birthday so family members from far and wide came together for a weekend of celebrating.
On Saturday night, an uncle and I were discussing our most recent beer discoveries when a cousin chimed in. We started to talk about our mutual love of beer and he told me that he’d brought a case of a beer that he was “sure I’d really love.” He explained that he’d only learned about it recently and that it has a nice light body with a hint of lime. Intrigued, I went to the fridge to take a look.
Unfortunately, this is what I found.
How does one deal with this type of situation? I really didn’t want to drink Bud Lime but I didn’t want to offend my cousin by turning down his beer. Making matters worse, it was the only beer at the party (my family is mostly cocktail drinkers and teetotalers). My options at this point seemed to be (a) suffer through a beer I really can’t stand or (b) risk insulting my cousin’s taste by coming out of the kitchen with lemonade.
If you know me, you know I spent the rest of the night sipping lemonade. I politely explained to my cousin that I’d had his new favorite brew before and didn’t really like it. He didn’t seem too miffed but I could tell what he was thinking: Beer Snob.
I’ve always resented that term because it’s always spoken with such malice. Someone who loves wine is a “connoisseur,” someone who makes great food is a “gourmet,” but someone who loves fine beer is a “snob”? Why the disdain?
Then again, why should I be ashamed of my beer knowledge? Why should I apologize for ordering an Anchor Steam when everyone around me is drinking Coors? Why should I fear someone rolling his eyes when I choose a good non-beer over a bad beer?
That’s it beer lovers. We’ve got to stand up for ourselves! Let’s take back the term beer snob! If drinking what I like makes me a snob, fine, I’m a snob. If drinking a refreshing, flavorful, and incredibly tasty beer makes me a snob, then you bet your ass I’m a snob.
On Saturday night, an uncle and I were discussing our most recent beer discoveries when a cousin chimed in. We started to talk about our mutual love of beer and he told me that he’d brought a case of a beer that he was “sure I’d really love.” He explained that he’d only learned about it recently and that it has a nice light body with a hint of lime. Intrigued, I went to the fridge to take a look.
Unfortunately, this is what I found.
How does one deal with this type of situation? I really didn’t want to drink Bud Lime but I didn’t want to offend my cousin by turning down his beer. Making matters worse, it was the only beer at the party (my family is mostly cocktail drinkers and teetotalers). My options at this point seemed to be (a) suffer through a beer I really can’t stand or (b) risk insulting my cousin’s taste by coming out of the kitchen with lemonade.
If you know me, you know I spent the rest of the night sipping lemonade. I politely explained to my cousin that I’d had his new favorite brew before and didn’t really like it. He didn’t seem too miffed but I could tell what he was thinking: Beer Snob.
I’ve always resented that term because it’s always spoken with such malice. Someone who loves wine is a “connoisseur,” someone who makes great food is a “gourmet,” but someone who loves fine beer is a “snob”? Why the disdain?
Then again, why should I be ashamed of my beer knowledge? Why should I apologize for ordering an Anchor Steam when everyone around me is drinking Coors? Why should I fear someone rolling his eyes when I choose a good non-beer over a bad beer?
That’s it beer lovers. We’ve got to stand up for ourselves! Let’s take back the term beer snob! If drinking what I like makes me a snob, fine, I’m a snob. If drinking a refreshing, flavorful, and incredibly tasty beer makes me a snob, then you bet your ass I’m a snob.
1 comment:
Sweet band ref.
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